BIOTROPIA - The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Biology
Vol. 19 No. 2 (2012)

VEGETATION OF LOWLAND TROPICAL FOREST (WEST PAPUA), HUMAN PRESSURE, FOOD AVAILABILITY AND WALLABY (Dorcopsis muelleri) PRESENCE

Karlè Sykora (Wageningen University)



Article Info

Publish Date
08 Jun 2013

Abstract

The presence of Dorcopsis muelleri in different habitats and related vegetation types has been studied in lowland tropical vegetation in the northern Part of Manokwari, West Papua. Four habitat types comprising 6 plant communities could be distinguished:  1. Grassland, Imperata cylindrica - Ipomea aquatica community; 2. Open forest: a. open forest transitional to grassland, Ficus robusta - Dendrochide sp. community, b. open forest after logging, Musa paradisiaca – Callamus longipina community, c. open forest regenerated after logging,  Diospyros hebecarpa-Lepinopsis ternatensis  community, d. open forest on rocky soil, regenerated after logging, Smilax malacensis-Pandanus tectorius community; 3. Undisturbed (“primary) closed forest, Sommeria leuchophylla–Paraltropis glabra community.  The forest wallaby has especially been noted in grassland, in open forest with only little logging activity and in undisturbed closed forest. It was however not registered from the forests with clear logging influence. D. muelleri appears to be very sensitive to human disturbance. Our results indicate that vegetation structure, food plant availability and possibly also vegetation composition is less important than human disturbance. There is a strong negative relation between on one hand presence of the forest wallaby and on the other hand logging, distance to villages and hunting.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

biotropia

Publisher

Subject

Agriculture, Biological Sciences & Forestry Biochemistry, Genetics & Molecular Biology Immunology & microbiology Veterinary

Description

BIOTROPIA, The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Biology, is a scientific publication of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) – Southeast Asian Regional Center for Tropical Biology (BIOTROP). It publishes articles in the broad areas of tropical ecosystems and ...